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ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 

His Personal History and Public Record. 



SPEECH 



OF 



HON. E. B. WASHBURNE, OF ILLINOIS. 



Delivered in the U. S. House of Representatives, May 29, i860. 



ar; 



Tbe House being in Committee of the 'WTiole oa the state 
of the Uuiou — 

Mr. WASHBURNE, of Illinois, said: 
Mr. CuAiHMAN : The Republican party, through 
its proper organization, has placed in nomina- 
tion for President of the United States, Abraham 
Lincoln, of Illinois. The people, who will be 
called upon to pass upon that nomination, have 
a right to inquire into the life, the character, 
and the political opinions, of the man who is 
commended to their suffrages for the highest 
office in their gift. The State which I in part 
represent on this floor, having been honored by 
this nomination, I come here to-day to speak of 
the personal and political history of the candi- 
date. I have known Mr. Lincoln well for twenty 
years. I have known him in private life, I have 
known him at the bar, and have been associated 
with him in every political contest in our State 
since the advent of " Tippecanoe and Tyler too," 
in 1840. While I may speak with the accents of 
a strong personal friendship, I shall speak with 
the frankness of conscious truth, and, I trust, 
without exaggeration. 

Springing from the humblest ranks in life, and 
unaided by the adventitious supports of family 
or wealth, Mr. Lincoln has reached his present 
exalted position by the strength of his will, the 
power of his intellect, and the honesty of his 
heart. He was born in Hardin county, Ken- 
tucky, February 12, 1808; his family removed 
to Spencer county, Indiana, in 1816, where he 
passed his boyhood amid the roughest hardships 
and the most trying experiences of a frontier 
life. Without schools, and almost without books, 
he spent bis. time amid the wild and romantic 
scenes of the border, alleviating the hard labors 
of the farm by the sport of the huntsman. Of 
fine physical development, with a vigorous intel- 
lect, quick intelligence, ready wit, and genial 
character, he gave early evidences of the supe- 
riority he has since attained. His first advent into 
tb«5 great wor^d, from the comparative seclusion 
of his frontier home, was down the Wabash and 



Ohio rivers in charge of & flat-boat, of aclass known 
to all the old river men of the West as "broad- 
horns." These boats, laden with the productions 
of the farmers, floated down stream until a mar- 
ket was found for the cargo; and when that was 
disposed of, the boat itself was sold, and those in 
charge made their way back, in the best manner 
they could, to their homes. A great many per- 
sons have heard Mr. Lincoln relate, with inimita- 
ble effect, the anecdotes of his experience of that 
po-rtion of his life. 

In 1830, Mr. Lincoln emigrated to that State, 
with which his great name has now become his- 
torically connected. He passed the first year in 
Macon county, and actively labored on a farm, 
where he and a fellow-laborer, by the name of 
John Hanks, split three thousand rails. This 
portion of the history of Mr. Lincoln's life gave 
rise to the incident in the late Republican State 
Convention at Decatur, in Macon county, which 
awakened the intensest enthusiasm of that vast 
concourse of citizens from all parts of the State. 
Mr. Lincoln was present as a spectator in that 
Convention, and was invited to take a seat upon 
the platform. When he had taken his seat, it 
was announced to the Convention that John 
Hanks, an old Democrat, who had grown gray in 
the service of that party, desired to make a con- 
tribution to the Convention ; and the offer being 
accepted, forthwith two old-time fence rails, 
decorated with flags and streamers, wera borne 
through the crowd into the Convention, bearing 
the inscription: 

ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 

TUE KAIL CANDIDATE 

FOR PRESIDENT IN 1860. 
Two rails from a lot of 3,000 made iu 
1830 by Jolm Haaks and Abo Lin- 
coln. 

The effect was electrical. One spontaneous 
burst of applause went up from all parts of the 
" wigwam." Of course, Mr. Lincoln was called 
out, and made an explanation of the matter. He 



PUBLISHED BY THE REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL COiUUTTEE. PRICE 60 CENTS P^ HUNDRED. 







2 



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stated that, some thirty years ago, then just em- 
igrating to the State, he stopped with bis mother's 
family, for one season, ia what is now Macon 
county ; that he huilt a cabin, split rails, and cul- 
tivated a small farm down on the Sangamon 
river, some six or eight miles from Decatur. 
These, he was informed, were taken from that 
fence; but,*whether they were or not, he had 
mauled many, and better ones, since he had 
grown to manhood. 

From Macon county he removed to a settle- 
ment called New Salem, which was then in San- 
gamon, but now in Menard county. It was at 
New Salem that Judge Douglas says he first knew 
Lincoln, and I cannot do better than to read 
here an extract from one of his speeches, made 
in the Illinois campaign in 1858, at Ottawa : 

" In the remarks I have made on this phiUbrin, and the 
position of Mr. Lincoln upon it, I moan nothing personally 
disrespectful or unkind to that gentleman. I have known 
him for nearly twunly-five years. There were many points 
of sympathy between us when we first got acquaintijd. We 
were both comparatively boys, and both struggling with 
poverty in a strange land. I was a scbool-t'aeher in the 
town of Winchester, and he a llomisliuig grocery-keeper m 
the town of Salem. He was more siicci'.'t^.slul in ni.s occupa- 
tion than I was in mine, and lieuce more fortunate in thi,s 
world's goods. Lincoln is one of tkciS'-. /irrtduir nu^n who ptr- 
form with admirable skill tvenjUdiifj icukli tkij utukrUike." — 
Lincoln and Douglas Debates, page 09. 

The last sentence in the above extract is wor- 
thy of especial note. Such a compliment ex- 
torted from his bitterest adver.sary has a greatly 
enhanced value. When Mr. Lincoln shall have 
undertaken the administration of the Govern- 
ment of this great country, the people will agree 
with Mr. Douglas that 

" Lincoln is one of those peculiar m^n loho perform wUh ad- 
mirable skill everything wiiich they undertake." 

Again : Mr. Douglas, in a speech in the Senate 
of the United States, January 23, lytiO, refers to 
Mr. Lincoln as one of '' the ablest and ■most clear- 
headed men" of the Republican parly. 

It may bo proper, however, here, to let the fol- 
lowing reply of Mr. Lincoln be heard in regard 
to his being a " flourishing grocery-keeper : " 

" The Judge is wofnlly at fault about his ciirly friend Lin- 
coln being a ' grocery-keeper.' I don't know an it would 
be a great sin, if I had been; but he is mistaken. Lincoln 
never kept a grocery anywhere ia the world. It is true that 
Lincoln did work the latter part of one winter in a little still- 
house, up at the head of a hollow." 

Now it is proposed, that as Lincoln spent a 
"part of one winter in a little slill-howBe, up at 
the head of a hollow," he shall spend the whole 
of four winters, at least, ia a largo lohile house at 
the head of Pennsylvania avenue. 

The Black Hawk war having broken out, Mr. 
Lincoln was among the first to raise a company 
of volunteers for that service, and he acquitted 
himself with credit. Returning from that cam- 
paign, he began in earnest to devoije the ener- 
gies of his great intellect and superior will to the 
acquisition of knowledge. He first acquired a 
knowledge of the art of surveying, but the de- 
mand for his services in that line of business was 
not suflicient to support him, and he was com- 
pelled to stirrender up his mathematical and sur- 
veying instruments to the sherifl, to be sold on 
execution. 

Nothing daunted by his misfortune, then it 
was he commenced the study of that profession 



upon which he has conferred so much honor, and 
in which he has attained so great a distinction. 
Borrowing a few elementary law books, he 
learned the rudiments of the profession by the 
dim light thrown out from the fire-place of a log 
cabin. 

In 183G he was placed in nomination, by the 
Whigs of Sangamon county, for a seat in the 
lower branch of the Legislature, which then met 
at Vandalia. He was elected, and gave early 
evidence of the superior qualities of his mind, 
and his skill and power as a debater. lie was 
elected, and served two subsequent sessions. 
Wider avenues were now opened to him in the 
acquisition of general knowledge, and of the 
knowledge of the law, which he improved to the 
utmost. Changing his residence from a precinct 
in the county to Springfield, which had then be- 
come the capital of the State, and where he has 
ever since resided, he was admitted to the bar, 
and embarked in his profession. His success 
was immediate. He displayed a knowledge of 
the principles of the law almost intuitive, and 
bis arguments were marked by strength of rea- 
soning, keenness of logic, a rough eloquence, 
and a flow of wit and humor. His fairness to 
his adversary, his disdain of all the little tricks 
which sometimes disgrace the profession, his 
entire candor and truthfulness, his original and 
easy mode of illustrtitiou, made him all powerful 
before a jury. He now ranks as the ablest and 
most successful lawyer in the State. 

My first knowledge of Mr. Lincoln was in the 
great campaign of 1840. He was then an elector 
on the Harrison electoral ticket. He stumped 
all the middle :ind lower part of the State with 
great eft'ect, travelling from the Wabash to the 
Mississippi in the hot months of July and August, 
shaking with the ague one day, and addressing 
the people the next, and establishing a reputa- 
tion as one of the most effective and popular 
speakers in the State, a reputation which he has 
ever siuce maintained. 

From 1840 to 1844 Mr. Lincoln devoted him- 
self entirely to the active pursuit of his profes- 
sion. The Clay campaign of 1844 brought him 
again into the political arena, and he headed 
the Whig electoral ticket in that canvass. Ho 
stumped the State, speaking to immense au- 
diences everywhere he went, winning the ap- 
plause of his friends, and extorting the admira- 
tion of his enemies, for his eloquent and masterly 
expositions of the principles of his party. After 
the defeat of Mr. Clay, and up to 184C, he was 
found devoted to his profession. In August of 
1846 he was elected to Congress, by the Whigs 
of the Springfield district, to succeed Col. E. D. 
Baker, 

In December, 1847, Mr. Lincoln took his seat 
in Congress. It is but proper that his recorded 
opinions, while a member of Congress, upon the 
questions then agitating the country, should be 
known, and I now propose to briefly review the 
record made by him in the Thirtieth Congress. 

In the House of Representatives, on the 3d of 
January, 184S, Mr. Evans, of Maryland, offered 
the following resolution . 



•■■w. 



" nesnlved, Tlint tho onpitiilation of llontcrcy meets with 
l)ic culirc saiictiou and approbrition of (bis Cougross, and 
lliat I lie terms of that capitulation were as crodil;iblo to tlic 
liiimanity ami skill ol tlic (,'allaut Taylor, as the achicvcmcut 
ol tlic victory ctMoatoroy was glorious to our arms." 

Mr. Asbmnn, of Massachusetts, moved to amend 
hy adding the word.s: " ia a wnr unnecessarily 
and uncoQstilutionally begun by the President 
' of the United States." The yeas and nays were 
onk'ied upon this nmcndment, and it was agreed 
to — yeas 85, niiys 81. [Congressional Globe, 
Vol. 18, /"7ye 9.J.) It was a strict party vote, 
every Whiff member of the House voting in the 
iifiiimaiive. Among the distinguished names of 
those who voted for this amcKdment I fmd that 
of Abraham Lincoln. 1 find also that he voted 
in what would now be called good Democratic 
company, and with men who are at the present 
time bright and shiuing lights in the Democratic 
party, and who have never been denounced as 
Irailors, taking sides with the enemy in time of 
war. Hon. Thomas L. Clingman, at present a 
Democratic Senator from North Carolina ; lion. 
Alexander II. Stephens, of Georgia, a leader of 
the Democratic party in the House of Represent- 
atives for several Congresses prior to the present 
one; Hon. Thomas Butler King, of Georgia, now 
II Democratic member of the Senate of that St.ite; 
lion. Daniel M. Barrirger, of Korth Carolina, 
late Minister to Spain, now a Democrat ; and 
Hon. Robert Toombs, the present able ond dis- 
Imguished Senator from Georgia, all of whom 
served with Mr. Lincoln in the Thirtieth Con- 
gress — with whom Mr. Toombs says, in a late 
speech, be had an " agreeable acquaintsmce," 
and all of whom voted precisely as Lincoln did, 
for this amendment of Mr. Ashmun. 

In regard to this vote, I prefer to let Mr. Lin- 
coln speak for himself. In replying to a speech 
of Judge Douglas, in the celebrated campaign 
in onr State in 1838, Mr. Lincoln said : 

" And so I thiuic my friend, tii3 Judgo, is equallj' at fault, 
vriisii ho ctiarges me, at the time when I was m Cuuiti-ess, of 
baviiig opposed our soldiers wlio were fighting in the Mex- 
ican war. The Judge did not make his charge very distinct- 
ly ; but X sail tell you what ho can prove by ro'erritig to the 
record. You remember I was an old Whig, and whenever 
the llcmocratic parly ti'ied to get me to vote that the war 
Lad been righteously buguu by the Pre.=ident, 1 would uot 
doit. Hut whenever they asked for any money, or laud 
T.-anants, or anything to pay the soldiers there, during all 
that time, I gave llio same vote that Judge Douglas did. Vou 
«.an think as you please as to whether that was consistent. 
Such is the truth ; and the Judge lias the right to maka all 
ho can out of it. Bu' when he by a general charge convey;; 
tho idea that I withheld supplies from the soldiers who were 
li.^hling m the Mexican war, or did anything else to hiudcr 
the soldiers, be is, to say the least, grossly and altogether 
mistaken, as a cousn'.tatiou of tlie records will prove to 
Lull " — Lincoln ayid Doujlas Di:haL'K,paje 75. 

In a speech in this House, on the 27th day of 
July, 1848, Mr. Lincoln, referring to the same 
matter, spoke in the following language of trui:h, 
eloquence, and patriotism : 

'• II', when the war had begun, and had become the cause 
of the country, the giving of our money and our I)!ood, in 
common witli yours, was support of the war, then it is not 
true that we have always oi>poso(l the war. With few indi- 
vidual e.xcoptions, you have constantly bad our votes hero 
for all the necessary supplier. And, more than this, you 
Lave had the services, tho blood, and the lives, of our politi- 
cal brcthreu, in every trial, and on every field. Tho beard- 
less lioy and the mature man, the humble and the distin- 
fjuish^d — you have had them. TliroNgh suffering and death, 
I'V disease and in battle, they have endured and fought and 
(ell with you. Clay >iud Webster each gave a sou, never to 



bo returned. From tho State of ray own residence, besides 
other worthy but less known Whig names, we sent Mar- 
shall, Morrison, Baker, and Hardin; they all fought, and 
one fell, and in tho fall of that one we lost our best Whig^ 
man. 

" Nor were the Whigs few in number, or laggard in ths 
day (if danger. In that fearful, bloody,' breathless struggle 
at Bucua Vist^i , where each man's hard Uisk was to beat 
back live foes or die himself, of tho five high officers who 
perished, four were Whigs. 

" In speaking of this, I mean no odious comparison be- 
tween the lion-hearted Whigs and Democrats who fought 
there. On other occasions, and among the lower ofBcers 
and privates on (/laj occasion, I doubt not the proportion was 
dil^'rcnl. I wish to do justice to all. I think of all those 
brave men as Americans, in whoso proud Came, as an Amer- 
ican, I too have a share. Many of them, Whigs and Demo- 
crais, lire my constituents and personal friends; and I thank 
them — more than thank them — one and all, for the high, 
imperishable honor they have conferred on our couuuoa 
State." — C(Wi/7rcs.sto?m7 Ghbr,v(jl. 10,3)aye 1042. 

Such being the patriotic and consistent po- 
sition of Mr. Lincoln on the war, when the bill 
for supplit,* for our army in Mexico came up oa 
the 8ih day of March, 1848, his vote is of course 
found recorded in favor of the bill. (Congret' 
sional Globe, i^ol. IS, jja^e 445.) 

Following this up, we find Mr. Lincoln ever 
watchful ot the interests of the soldier, propo- 
sing to extend the bounty land act, not only so 
far as regarded the volunteers to Mexico, but to 
the war-worn veterans of 1812 ; thus putting in 
motion that great measure of public justice 
which was finally meted out to those brave and 
patriotic men. On the proposition to amend the 
bounty land law of February 11, 1847, which 
was jiassed before Mr. Lincoln became a member 
of Congress, Mr. Lincoln spoke aa follows: 

" If there was a g(uieral desire on the part of the House to 
pass the bill now, he should bo glad to have it doue — con- 
curring as ho did giuierally with tho gentleman from Arkan- 
sas, [Mr. Joiixso.t.l that the pu.stponement might jeopard the 
safely of the iiroposilion. If, however, a reterenco was to 
be made, he wished to make a very few remarks ia relation 
to thcs iveral subjects desired by gentlemen to be embraced 
in amendments to tho ninth serijou of the actof tho last ses- 
sion of Congress. The first amendment desired by members 
of this House had lor its only object to give bounty lauds to 
such persons as had served for a limo as privates, but had 
ucvor been discharged as such, because promoted to oflBce. 
That subject, and no other, was embraced in this bill. There 
were some others who desired, while they were legislating 
on this subject, that they should also give bounty lands to 
the volunteers of the war of 1812. His friend from Mary- 
lanrl [Jlr. Evans] said there were no such men. Ho (Mr. 
L ) did not s ly there were many, but ho was very confident 
there were some. His friend from Kentucky near him [Mr. 
Gaines] told him he himself was one. 

" There was still another jiroposition touching this matter: 
that was, that persons entitled to bounty land should by law 
bo eiilltled to locate these lands in parcels, and not be re- 
quired to locate them in one body, as was provided by the 
existing law. 

" Now, he had carefully drawn up a bill embracing these 
separate propositions, which ho intended to propose as a 
substitute for all these bills in the Houec.or in Committee of 
tiie Wiiole oa the slate of the Union, at some suitable time. 
If there was a disposition on the jiart of the House to act at 
once on this separate proposition, he repeated that, with the 
gentleman from Arkansas, ho should prefer it, lest they 
should lose all. But if there was to be a refcrence,Tie de- 
sired to introduce his bill embracing the three propositions— 
thus enabling the Committee and the Houso to act at the 
same time, whether favorably or unfavorably, upon all." — 
Concirrxaiimal Globe, vol. 18, jiri(/« 550. 

Thus it will be seen tliat Mr. Lincoln not only 
favored the bill before the House, but he pro- 
posed embracing the soldiers of the war of 1812, 
and also to authorize the soldier to locate his 
land in parcels, and not be obliged to locate it 
in one body; a most just and liberal propo- 
sition. 



On the great question of rivers and harbors, 
Mr. Lincoln is eminently sound and practical, 
and his views must meet with the approbation 
of the country. On the 2-2d day of June, 184S, he 
made a speech in the House of Uepresentatives, on 
the message of President Polk vetoing the river 
and harbor bill. In reply to that part of the mes- 
eage of Mr. Polk touching the suggestion of a 
change of the Constitution, he made the follow- 
ing observations, which should sink deep into 
the hearts ot the American people : 

" As a general rule, I think we would do much bettor to 
let it aloue. No sligUt occusioa should tempi us to touch it. 
Better not take the first step, which m!iy load to a h;iuit ol 
altering it. Better riilher hab.tualo ourselves to thiulv of it 
aa unalterable. It cun scarcely bo made bettor than it i.s. 
New provisions would introduce new difflculties, and thus 
create and increase appotito lor still further change. N'o, 
sir; let it stand as it is. Now liands have never touched it. 
The men who made ithavedoue their work, and tuvo passed 
away. Who shall improve ou wtiat they didf" 

After conclusively replying to the arguments 
of the message, Mr. Lincoln proceeds with the 
following eminently practical suggestions : 

" Determine that the thinp can and shall be done, and then 
wo shall QuU the way. The tendeucy to uuduo LXpausiou is 
unquestiouably the chief difflcully. llow to do something, 
and still nottodo too Jiiuc/i, is the desiileratum. Let each 
contribute his mito iu the w.iy of auggesiiou. The lato .-^inui 
Wright, in a letter to iho Chicago Cuuveutiou, contributed 
his, which was worth snmi^thuig; and 1 now contribute miuo, 
which may be worth nothing. At all events, it will mislead 
nobo.ly, aud therefore will <lo no h.irin. I would not borrow 
money. 1 a:o «g:iiusi an oveiwhi-.iniDg, cruslUn^ system. 
Suppose that, lit each session, Con^n ss &h!ill lirsl determine 
liuio much money tun, lor that year, b ; spared lor iiiiprovc- 
menis ; then ajiiwriiou thatpuin to the most important ob- 
jects, do tar, all is ea?y ; but how .-^hall wo dolTuiiuo which 
aretl.i most important? On ihi.s q.Mjsilou come.s thecoUibiuii 
of Mt?re.sts. 1 shad be .«low lo ac'Juowledgo lh;il yntr bar- 
ber or yu'ir river is more imixirtjiuttli.in )/iine,aiidn"r'it:(.;a. 
Tocif^a.- this difllculty, let us have that samo slat.si cat lu- 
i'ormiuoa which the gentleman Irnin Uh.o (Mr. Vailoii| su;,'- 
g?sii d at the liogmmug ol tlns.scssion. In ihal inloi oialion 
we shall have afilc.'ii, imb'.'iidiiig b.isi.s (>( farlt — :i bis.s iti 
no w se subject to whim, capnco, or local iut:TPSt. The pre- 
houied amoMut of m'-au.-? will savo us from doing <i« much. 
aud the statistics will savo us frcni doing what wo do in 
wrong ylaca. Adopt and adhere lo this cours'-.nnil, it seems 
to me, the dillkully is cleared. " — CunynMiunal Oi'jlK,aii. 
19,jKige',09. 

On the passage of the river and harbor bill 
by the House, August 11, 1843, Mr. Lincoln's 
name is found in the affirmative. (Congressional 
Globe, vol. iS,paje 1062.) 

The tariff question was not up in Congress 
during Mr. Lincoln';; term of service, but he 
nevertheless had an opportunity of putting him- 
self upon the record in favor of protecting the 
great interests of American labor. 

Hon. Andrew Stewart, of Pennsylvania, called 
"Tariff Andy," ou the lOih day of June, 18 IS, 
asked leave to introduce the following resolution: 

" Retolrtd, That the Committee of Ways and Means be in- 
structed to inquire into the expediency of reporting a bill 
increasing the dut'es on foreign lusuriea ofall kinds, and on 
such foreifu manufactures as arc now coming into ruinoua 
competiiiou with American labor." 

Upon the question being taken, Mr. Lincoln 
voted in the affirmative. ( Congre^monal Globe, vol. 
18, page 652.) 

Mr. Lincoln was an early and consistent ad- 
vocate of the doctrine of slavery prohibition in 
the Teniiories, and of the power of Congress over 
them. He voted for the amendment to the 
Otegon bill, which extended the ordinance of 



1 787 over Oregon Territory, and for the bill thna 
amended. (Congressional Globe, vol. 18, page 
1027.) 

Such is the record made by Mr. Lincoln on all 
the important mailers before Congress while Iio 
was a member. Though serving his constituents 
with ability and fidelity, and to ihn entire satis- 
faction of his friends, he declined a rcncraination, 
prefering the quiet pursuit of his profession, and 
the enjoyments of private life, to the blandisli- 
ments of office and the turmoil of political strife. 
Yet, such was his interest in political matters, 
and so deeply did he feel the importance to the 
country of the success of the principles ho up- 
held, that he actively participated iu the Presi- 
dential contest of 1852. 

The repeal of the Missouri compromise, in 
1854, called Mr. Lincoln again into the Deld of 
politics, and he threw himself into the great 
contest of that year, with all the euergy ot his 
character and the power of his will. Stutuping 
the State in all directions, and speaking to im- 
mense audiences, he awakened the people to tiie 
aggressive character of that Itgislation, and 
called on them to rebuke that " ruthless band " 
whii:h dared to break down that sacred compro- 
mise, aud which, in the words of Senator n.)iig- 
las, '• was akin to the Constitution, and cauotuz«<l 
iu the hearts of the American people." 

Upon the Legislature elected that year de- 
volved the duty of electing an Utitted States 
Senator, in the place of General Shields, wiio 
had voted lor the Kansas-Nebraska bill. The 
Whigs and Anti-Nebraska Democrats constitutiil 
a majority ot both branches of that Leg'siaiurt-, 
but five sixths of this majority had been VViiigs, 
and .Mr. Lincoln was their lirst choice for Senator. 
The Anti-Nebraska D-'mocrats presented Jiid;;o 
Trumbull as a candidate, and .Mr. l..iuco'n find- 
ing alter the balloting commenced that tlie con- 
tiuuauce of his naiuc before the joint Convention 
might result in the election of tho Nebraska 
Democratic candidate, magnanimously withd.tew 
from tho contest, and earnestly enlreaKed his 
friendstoelcct Judge Trumbull, an Anti-Nebraska 
Democrat, whose subseqiwnt career in the Senate 
has been marked by great ability, and by strict 
fidelity to the convic iona of those who elected 
him. 

In 185G, the Repnblican party in Illinois wag 
fully inaugurated as a State organization at the 
Bloomington Convention, held in iMay of thaft 
year. Mr. Lincoln was present at that Conven- 
tion, and gave the weight and influence of hia 
great name to the establishment ol that parly, 
and to a bold iind emphatic declaration ol prin- 
ciples. His speech upon that occasion was one 
of the most masterly efforts of his life, and carried 
conviction to all minds, stirring up the Con- 
vention to the highest pitch of enthnsiaim, and 
nerving every man with resolute determination. 
He was placed on the Republican electoral ticket 
as an elector at large, associated with FiiEDEBio 
Hecker, the German patriot and orator, who 
had fought for liberty in bis native land, and 
whose eloquence awakened in the hearts of hia 
countrymen the highest emotions of patriotism. 
In that campaign Mr. Lincoln again canvassed 



the State, laboring with great earnestness and 
zeal; and it could truly be said of him, 

" No dangers dauutej, and no lubors tired." 
Though llr. Buchanan carried the State, yet 
the entire Republican iState ticket was elected. 

Great interest centred in the election of 1858 — 
the Legislature to be elected was to name a suc- 
cessor to Judge Douglas in the Senate of the 
United States. The Republican State Conven- 
tion for that year, to nominate candidates for 
State ofiicers, with entire unanimity and amid 
hnbounded enthusiasm designated Mr. Lincoln 
as the choice of the Republicans of the State for 
United States Senator, to succeed Judge Douglas. 
Of all the able and distinguished Republicans in 
the State, such was the hold of Mr. Lincoln oa 
the party, such was the devotion of the masses 
to his interests, that no other name was sug- 
gested or thought of in connection with the can- 
didacy for Senator. 

I will now allude to some of the incidents of 
the great campaign of 1858, between Lincoln 
and Douglas which assumed national propor- 
tions, and attracted the attention of all parts of 
the country, by the ability and vigor of the dis- 
cussious and the intense excitement which at- 
tended the canvass. All the great questions that 
now agitate the country were fully and elabo- 
rately dissussed in their debates, and Mr. Lin- 
coln s position on those question can be most 
fully and satisfactorily understood by a reference 
thereto. 

In a discussion at Freeport, in my own dis- 
trict, at which I was present, Mr. Douglas sub- 
mitted to Mr. Lincoln a series of interrogatories, 
embracing all the various propositions involved 
in the question of slavery. I cannot do better 
here than to extract the questions and answers 
trom a recent speech of the distinguished Sena- 
tor from Louisiana, [Mr. Be.njami.w,] in the United 
istates ISenate, together with his comment there- 
on. Speakiug of that canvass, Mr. Benjamin 
eays : 

'■ III that contest, the two candidates for the Senate of the 
United tjtatcs, in the t>iate of Illmo;s, wont before iLicir pfo- 
ple. They agreed to discuss the issues ; they put questions 
to each other lor answer ; and I must say hero, lor I uuisl 
ho jiust to all, that I have been surpri.sed in the csaminatiou 
that J luado again \nthiu the last lew days of this discussion 
hetwccn Mr. Lincolu and Mr. Douglas, to find that Mr. Lin- 
coln IS a tar more con.-ei-vative uian, unless he has since 
clianged his opmions, than 1 had supposed him to be. There 
Avas no dodging on his part. Mr. Douglas started with his 
questions. Here they are, with Jlr. LLncolii's answers : 

'■ Question 1. I desire to know whether Lincoln to-day 
Ptauds, ;.s he did in 1S54, in favor of the unconditional re- 
peal of the. fugitive slave law? 

"Answer. I do not now, nor over did,.';tand in favor of 
the unconditional repeal of the fugitive slave law. 

" QuesUoni. 1 desire him to answer whether he stands 
pledged to-day, as he did in 1854, against the admission of 
iiiiy more slave States into the Union, even if the people 
want them ? 

^- Amuer. J do not now, nor ever did, stand pledged 
jigaiust the admission of any more slave States into the 
Luion. 

" Question 3. I want to know whether he stands pledged 
agamst the admission of a new State into the Union with 
6uch a Constitution as the people of that State may see fit to 
make ? 

" Anmer. I do not stand pledged against the admission of 
a new State into the Union wi,th such a Constitution as the 
people of tbat State may see lit to make. 

' ■ Question i. I want to know whether he .stands to-day 
pledged to tlie ahoUtiou of slavery iu Lho District of Colum- 
bia? 



' " Ansiwr. T do not stanrl to-day pledged to the aholition ol 
slavery in the District of Columbia. 

" Question 5. I desire him to answer whether ho stands 
pledged to the prohibition of the slave tra^e between tho 
difliToiit States ? 

" Answer. I do not stand pledged to the prohibition of tho 
slave trade between tho different States. 

" Question G. I desire to know whether he stands pleOgcd 
to prohibit slavery in all the Territories of the United Stales, 
north as well as south of the Mis.souri compromise line? 

" Ans^usr. I am impliedly, if not expressly, pledged to a 
belief in the right and du!;/ of Congress to prohibit slavery in 
all the United States Territories. 

" Quesliun 7. I desire him to answer whether ho is op- 
posed to the acquisition of any new territory unless slavery 
vi fir.'t prohibited therein? 

^^ Answer. lam not generally opposed to honest acquisi- 
tion of territory ; and, iu any given casi?, I would or would 
not oppose Fiich acquisition, accordingly as I might think 
such acquis tlon would or would not aggravate the slavery 
question among ourselves." — Debates of Lincoln and Dowj- 
las, p. 88. 

" It is impossible, Mr. President, however we may differ 
in opinion with the man, not to admire the perfect candor 
ruid frankness with which these answers Were given; no 
equivocation — no evasion.'' 

Nothing can be more just than the compH- 
raents paid by the distinguished Louisiana Sena- 
tor to the candor and frankness of Mr. Lincoln. 
It is not an unusual thing for him to extort ex- 
pressions of admiration from his op'ponents, for 
the fairness and candor of his arguments, both 
in political discussion and at the bar. It was 
saiti of him by one of the Judges of our Supreme 
Court, that he stated the propositions and argu- 
ments of his adversary so fully and fairly, that 
but little further was necessary to be said. 

It is but ju'st, however, that Mr. Lincoln tboukl 
be heard furthir on these questions and answers, 
and in explanation of them, and iu the same dis- 
cussion, he says : 

'• Now. my friends, it will be percoiveLupon an exnuii- 
nation of ilies^ que-tions and answers, that ?o far I have 
only aiiswereil lliot I was not pUd^fd to ll is, Uiai, or the 
oiher The J-.'.dgp. has not framed hi^ interrogatories to 
n-k m- anylliiiig more than this, and I have aII^wered in 
s'rict iiccordancc wiili the interrogatories, and have an- 
swered tru y that I am no'.jilerl^fd at all up'/H any of the 
poinl.s 10 woieh I have answered. l?uli am not disposed 
to hang upon the exact form of his interrogatory. I am 
rnther\li-poL-ed to take up at lea.«t some of these ques- 
tion-, and -late what I reilly think upon them. 

"A'' to (he first one in regard to the Fugitive Slave law, 
I have never hesitated to say, and I do not now hesitate 
to i-ay, that ( tliink, under the Constitution of the United 
States, the people of the Sou'liern Slates are en itled to a 
Congre5=ioiial t U'jitive Slave law. Having said Ihnt, I 
have liad iioihingtosay in regard to the existij:ij Fugitive 
Slave law, farihertian mail think it should have been 
f. amed so as to be free from some of the objections that 
peitain to it, without lessening its efficiency. And inas- 
much as we are not now in an a'^italion in regard to an 
alteration or modificatroii of that'law, I would not be the 
man to introduce it as anew subjectof agitation upon the 
general question of slavery. 

" In regard to the other question, of whetherl am pledged 
to tlie admission of any more slave Slates into tlie Union, 
I stale to you very frankly that I would he exceedingly 
sorry ever to be put in a position of having to pass upon 
thit question. I should be exceedingly glad to know that 
there would never be another slave Stale admitted iiiio 
the Union: but I must add, that if slavery .shall be kej't 
out of ihe Territories during tlie territorial existence of 
any one given Territory, and then the people shall, hav- 
ing a fair chance and u clear field, wlieii they come to 
adopt the Coa.slitution, do such an extraordinary thing as 
to adopt a slave Coiisiitution, uniufiu^nced by the actual 
presence of the i!i>titution among them. I see no alteriia- 
live, if we own the country, but to admit them inio the 
Union. :, , , 

"The third interrogatory is answered liy the answer 
to the second, it being, as I conceive, the .same as tho 
second. 

•• Ike fourth cue is in regard to the abolition of slaveT 



tn the District of Columbia. In relation to that. I have 
my inind very dislinclly made. up. I should be exceed- 
ingly glad to see slavery abolished in llie District of Co- 
lumbia. I believe that Oouaress po.?se';ses the constilu- 
t o al povi'er lo abo isti it. Yet, as a member of Cony;ress. 
i should 1)01, with ray present vkw?, be in l:ivor of en- 
r/fHcoriri"- to aboli-h slaveiy in the District of Columbia, 
unless it would be upon these rondiiions ; First, that the 
nboblion shuuld be gradual Second, that it sliould be on 
u vo'.e oi tliu majority of iiualitied voters i i lli^ Di.-'rict 
And, tinrd ihat compensation should he m;i(le lo unwillinjr 
owners. Willi these tliree conditions, 1 conloss t v,oiild 
lie exceedingly glad to see C.nigress abolish slavery in 
the District of Columliia, and, in ihe language of llenry 
Clay, -sweep from our capital that foul biot upon our 
nail on.' 

"In regard to the fifth interrogatory, I must say here, 
that as lotlie queslinn of the al)o:ition of the slave trade 
bflweeii the dvierent Slates. I can truly answer, as 1 have 
that I am pi il^td to nothing about it. It is a su' ject to 
wliicu I have not giveii that mature co.isid'-r-iion that 
would make me fec;l authorized to slate a position so as 
to hold myself entirely bound by it. In other words, that 
question has never been proinii.ently enough bel\ re. me to 
induce ine to invesU:.. ale vvlieiher we really have the con- 
Eti utioiial power to doit. I could investigate it if I had 
suflicir.nt time, to bring myself to a coiielu.^ion upon thai 
subject; but I liavc not done so, and 1 ssiy .-o frankly to 
you nere, and lo .ludge Douglas I must sav, however, 
that ifls.iould ne of npinioii ihal Congress does posi-ss 
the consututional power to abolish tin- slave trade among 
the dilierent M.ites, 1 siiOuld still not be in favor of ti^e 
exercise of thnt power unless upon some conserviiUve 
ininciple, as I conceive it, akin lo what I have >aid in 
relation to the abolition of .slavey in the Lislrjci of 
Colunbia. 

■'My answer as to whether I df'sire that slavery should 
be proiiibiled in all tin; ieirilones of the United Males 
is lul! and explicit wilhiii ilsolf, and c.mniH be ni;;de 
clearer by any comments of iriiuc. So I suppose, in re- 
[,'ard to the ciuesiion, waether I am opp.'i-ed lo tlie ac- 
(juisition oi any more t."rniur , unf ss slavery is fir,i p o 
Inbited therein iny ansv.er is snch liiat I eo ,! ■ ;\<\o nutli- 
ing by way of il; usual 1011, or making iny-cll heUc.i- .:ink r- 
ttood, than liie answer winch 1 have placed in wniiiig 

'• iNow. i,i all this, the Judge has me, and he ha < ni.;, on 
her'ciiri. 1 suppose he had fi 'ileied himself tiiai J whs 
Jcally entertaining one set of opinions for oiif pl-H'e and 
Jtaollnr .-ei iVn' anolher place— Unit 1 wa- ulVanl in say ; I 
me place what 1 utterc-1 at anoihei. Wh.a 1 am s^iying 
hero 1 siippo e 1 say lo a vas' audience as siroii- ly inm 
iiig to Aiiolilioiiism as any audience 111 the Siaie oi lln- 
iois,aMd i believe 1 am saying that which, ii it would [>r 
olleiisive to any persons, and leiuU r ihtni t iiciinr^ ui ni;. - 
«eli, would be ollensive to (ler-ons iii Ins iiudience."'— 
Lincoln a,i'l Dmt^tns Jjtf'aies, ja^es t.-, r3. 

As a Republican, Jlr. Lmcoln thus ftirther 
speaks the seuliments of hi3 party iu regard to 
the slavery question : 

" They look upon it as a vast mor,il evil ; tbcy can prove 
It as such by the writings of those who gave us the blessings 
4ji liberty which we enjoy, and tb.it they so looked upon it, 
and not as an evil merely couliaiiig itself to the btates where 
it is situated ; and while Wi agree that, by the Con.stitution 
we assented to, in the States where it exists we have no 
right to interfere with it, because it is iu the Constitution ; 
and wo are by both duty and inclination to stick by that 
Coustitution, iu all its letter and spirit, from beginniug to 
cud. * * * The Republican party is made np of those 
W'ho, as far as they can peaceably, will oppose the c.Kteusion 
olslavery, and who will hope fur its ultimate extinction. " — 
Lincoln and Douylas Dd)CiJ.e^-,pagi: 19. 

Now, Mr. Chairman, one wonl as to the Dred 
iScoLt decision, and Mr. Lincoln's position in re- 
gard to it. He says : 

" I have expressed heretofore, and I nowrepoat, my crp- 
position to the Dred Scott decision, but I should be allowed 
to state the nature of that opposition ; and I ask your indul- 
gence while I do so. AVhat is fairly implied by the term 
Judge Douglas has used, ' resistance lo the decision?' I do 
not resist it. If I wanted to take Dred Scott from bis mas- 
ter, I would be interfering with prsperty, and that terrible 
ilifticulty, that Judge Douglas speaks of, of interfering with 
property would arise. But 1 am doing no such thing as that; 
but all that I am iloing Is reUisiug to obey it as a political 
rule. If I were in Congress, and a vote should come up on 
(ho <iucstioii whether slavery should be prohibit** m a ucw 



Territory, in spite of the Dred Scott decision, I wonlcl voto 
that r, should. That is what I would do. Judge Douglas 
said last night, that before the decision he might advance 
his opinion, and it might be contrary to the decision when 
it was made; but niter it was made, he would abide by it; 
until it was reversed. Just so. We let this property aliida 
by the decision, but we will try to reverse that decision. 
We will try to ]iut it where Judge Douglas would not ob.ject, 
fir be. says be will obey it until it is reversed. Somebody 
bus lo rt vcr.s.' that decision, since it is made, and we mean 
to reversL- il, and we mean to do It jieacoably. 

"What are the uses of decisions of courts'? They have 
two uses. As rulcsof property, tbey have two iisi.'s. First, 
they decide upon the qiicotion before the court. They de- 
cide in this CISC that Drr I .'■^cott is a slave. Nobody re- 
sists that. Not only Ihat, but tlioy say to eviu-ybody else,, 
that persons sl;iudi:ig jast as Jired ^lcoa sta."!ds,arc as he Is. 
That is, they say that when a question comes up upon an- 
other p.erson, it will ln' so deealed again, unless Iho court 
decides iu another vvay, unless the com t overrules its decis- 
ion. Well, we mean to do what wo can to iiave the court 
decide the olber way. Th.'it is one thing we mean to try to 
do.'' — Lincoln and Douglas Debases, page 20. 

In regard to what would be the course of the 
Republican party towards our Southern brcthrea 
in the event of its accession to power, Mr. Lin- 
coln, addressing himself to Kenluckians, said ia 
his Cincinnati speech : 

" We mean to treat yon, as near as we possibly can, as 
Washington, Jelferson, and Madison, treated you. We mean 
to lea.veyou alone, and in no way to interfere with your in- 
slitutioii ; to ab'de by all and evi'ry conipi'Oinise of (ho Con- 
stitution; and, ina word, eoiuiu'jr back to llu! original |)ropo- 
sitiou, to treat you, so far as di-gcncrated men (ifwjhavo 
degenoratel) may , ;;ci:oriling to \[m\ ex nriples ortlios,, noble 
lathe.'S — W.isbiiigton, .Irff'rsiui, and Mauison. We mean to 
remcmbiT that >ou are as g'lod as W" ; that tlier>' is no dif- 
ierenc belv/eeu us,oth('rth.iu tin' dinVreni-e ol civcumslan- 
C'\s. We mean to roroguise and near in mini always that 

you have .i ^ : I nsai 13 111 your bosoms as other people, or 

as \\:- ( : : I I :, , , Hid treat you accordingly." — Lincoln 
and A-ii.,, 1. ; ^ . . , r.ags lO:', . 

In his speech at Ottawa, Jlr. Lincoln further 
says : 

'' I will say h're, whih' uprin this subject, that I have no 
pMi'iHi-", .lin',-|,y or iirlaaT;iy, to mtrrfare With tho lustltu- 
lion oi s;a\'e: y ill Ih" ^; iii-i wlicic it ex. sis. 1 believe 1 bavo 
no lawial I'.L'ht lo do so, and J iia vo no uic'iiial ion to do HO. 
I h.iv;.' no p .roo.^e lo lalrodiua; pohtieal and sorial equalUy 
lioUvi'iM Ihe wiutoa'ai the blai.'l; riioi s. Tliere is ;i physical 
if ll'iMi.'iir:' h 'l-^v,. .11 1'lj.-i-.vo, which, in my judgment, will prob- 
ably toi .-,,■;■ loih. ■, ili ar liviiiu' togellior upon the fooling of 
p-iaeii eqi.a'.tv ; and ii; isni'ieii as it brroiiif.^a necessity that 
Ihin-e 111', si, lira d ill' Trui-' ■, 1. as W"ll as.bidge Douglas, am in 
fivor oi tie- lacc I iwli.ih i bi'ioi.g having Iho superior posi- 
tion. 1 Imvc ii"vrrsa:d.;riyll;,iig In the eontrary , but 1 hold 
that, notwithstanding ail t'.i s, llia;-i' j.s no reason'iu Ihr' world 
why the neg.-o is not eiit I:,: I to all Ihe nalural rights enu- 
merated in the Declaration of bidcpendonco — Ihe right to 
life, liberty, and the parsml, ol bappLUess."— i/.uta;i7i. mid 
Uoua'as i>eba/cs,p:[gn 7-5. 

The result of that contest is known. The Re- 
publican State ticket was triumphantly elected. 
Mr. Lincoln triumphed by the popular voice. 
The candidates for the Legislature friendly to 
Mr. Lincoln received more votes than the candi- 
dates friendly to Judge Douglas, and Lincola 
wag only defeated for Senator by an iniquitous 
and unjust apportionment, which stifled the voice 
of the m.ijority. 

The entire vote for the Lincoln candi- 
dates for the Iicgislature, was - - 125,3'75 
The entire vote for the Douglas candi- 
dates lor the Legislature, was - - 121,190 



Lincola leading Douglas in the popular 
vote ------ 4,185 

I have thus, Mr. Chairman, briefly adverted tu 
the private history and public life of Mr. Lin- 
coln, and both commend him to the country as a 
worthy candidate, of a great and patriotic pai'ty, 



for President of the United States. Ilis nomi- 
natiou has touched the popular heart, and has 
been received with approbation everywhere. The 
masses of the people are rallying under the flag 
of the man ot their choice, and they will bear 
bini to the Presidential chair by an overwhelm- 
ing majority. Diisatiifaction at the results of 
the Chicago Convention now only exists among 
our Democratic brethren. They profess to 
think we did not nominate the proper man, and 
shed "crocodile tears" over the defeat of the 
nomination of a candidate whom they have 
hunted through his whole jiolitical career by a 
persistent malignity, without parallel in the his- 
tory of the country. Such pympathy, under such 
circumstances, is no new thing. It was exhibited 
in the case of Mr. Clay, when General Taylor 
was nominated over him in 1848. The Demo- 
rrats were then very mucli troubled at the great 
mistake the Whigs made in throwing overl^oard 
their great leader, Mr. Clay, and nominating the 
hero of Buena Vista. I know of no better reply 
to all tbid, than Mr. Lincoln made in a speech in 
this House on the 27th day of July, 1848 : 

"Mr. Spi.'akcf, let otu' I)einocr;itic iVieuds be conifortod 
witli the us.suraUL'U that Wii aru coutcut with our ijosition, 
coutent witb our company, and coatcut with our caiulidiUs ; 
and that, a.Hbough tliry iu their generoi;.s sympathy thmk 
wt! ought to bu luisfrahlo, wo really arc not, and that tht-y 
may dismiss tho great anxiety Ihcy have on our account.'" — 
Cunfiressiiir>M<' Globe, vol. 19, page 1043. 

The Ilepablican party prefers to make its own 
aomina ions, as it is able to manage its own con- 
cerns in its own way. This party is the most 
VYpposing reunion of men for a piitriotic object 
which this country has ever known. All good 
men, of all parties, who desire to see the Gov- 
ernment rescued from its present degradation, 
and who would stay the further spread of sla- 
very, can unite upon the candidates and the 
platform of the Chicago Convention. The hope 
which Jlr. Lincoln expressed, iu the Illinois 
campaign of 1858, should be realized in the 
great contest upon which wo have now entered. 
In his speech at Freeport, Mr. Lincoln said: 

" For my part, I do liope that all of us, entertaining a coin- 
mon sontiiueut iu opposition to what appears to hs a design 
to nationalize and perpetuate slavery, will waive minor dil- 
I'ereuces on questions which cither belong to the dead past 
or the distant future, and all pull togclhor iu this strug- 
gle."— Lincoin aiid Dour/las Vehales, page 107. 

The success of the Ilepublican party, which 
has been inaugurated by the nomination of Mr. 
Lincoln, will bring with it great duties and 
grave responsibilities. A strict observance of 
the Constitution and an inliexible administra- 
tion of the law must be its rule. It must 
practice the most rigid economy in every de- 
partment of the Government; repress with a 
vigorous hand all abuses that have crept into 
its administration ; bring about fraternal feeling, 
reanimate industry, clear out the pathways, and 
spread the sails of coinmerce. It must save the 
common Territories of the United States from 
the curse of slavery ; re-establish the public 
credit, and restore coniidence between man and 
man. The immediate re-establishment of the 
public good must be its first great object, and 
the peace and prosperity of the country will be 
assured. 

Mr. Lincoln has been but little in public life, 
and he will come into the Presidential chair 
•' fresh from the people," with •' no friends to 



reward, and no enemies to punish." Tie has no 
complications with politicians, cliques, or fac- 
tions, and no outstanding promises requiring 
redemption. One of the jieople, taken up by the 
people, he will be the President of tlie jifople. 
In liim there are united the elements wbi h 
challenged the coniidence of the Convention 
which nominated him, and of the people who 
will elect him. Pie is emphatically a represent- 
ative man, and by the simplicity of his manners 
and the purity of bis private life he is the typo 
of the virtues which belong to a, great Eepublic. 
There is an inflexible patriotinii in his heart, 
and he has the incorruptibility of Republican 
principles in his soul. He has doctrines, not 
hatreds, and is without ambition, except to do 
good and serve his country. 

In these daj.s, when corruption, prodigality, 
and venality, have reached the very vitals of ihe 
Government, the people have at last found an 
ho/iest man to administer the afiairs of the nation 
in the spirit in which our insiitutious were 
Ibunded ; a man whose name has ever been the 
synonym of probity and honor — who^^e repu- 
tation, in all the relations of private life, ij 
without blemish, as his public career is with- 
out reproach. No man ever has, and no man 
ever can, place his finger upon a single dis- 
honorable or improper act of his life. He stands 
to-day, as a private citizen and public man, un- 
assailed and unassailable — 

" An iio.vEST MAX, the noblest work of God." 
Of no man can it more truly be said : 
'' His lilP is sentlo ; and the elements 
So mixed in iiini, that Nature might stand up. 
And say to all the wo.-M, (hi:: U a man.'' 



Sepuiblican Piatforni adopted by the Clii 
cago CoirvGntioii, May 17, 1860. 

Resolved, That we, the delegated representa- 
tives of the Republican Electors of the United 
States, in Convention assembled, in the dischrfrge 
of the duty we owe to our constituents and our 
country, unite in the following declarations : 

First. That the history of the natiou during 
the last four years has fully established the pro- 
priety and necessity of the organization and per- 
petuation of the Republican party, and that th-j 
causes which called it into existence are perma- 
nent in their nature, and now, more than ever 
before, demand its peaceful and constitutional 
triumph. 

Second. That the maintenance of the principles 
promulgated in the Declaration of Independence, 
and embodied in the Federal Conrtitution, is es- 
sential to the preservation of our rejuiblican in- 
stitutions ; that the Federal Constitution, tho 
rights of the States, and the Union of the State.'?, 
must and shall be preserved; and that we reas- 
sert " these truths to be self-evident, that all men 
are created equal ; that they are endowed by their 
Creator with certain unalienable rights; that 
among these are life, liberty, and the ptarsuit of 
happiness. That to secure these rights. Govern- 
ments are instituted among men, deriving their 
just powers from the consent of the governed." 

2 hird. That to the Union of the States this 
nation owes its unprecedented increase in popu- 
lation ; its surprising development of material 
resources ; its rapid augmentation of wealth ; 



it? happiness at borne and its honor abroad; and 
we hold in abhorrence all schemes for disunion, 
come from whatever source they may ; and we 
congratulate the country that no Republican 
member of Congress has uttered or countocanccd 
a threat of disunion, so ofcen made by Demo- 
cratic members of Confrress without rebuke and 
■with applause from their i)o!itical associates ; 
and we denounce those threats of disunion, in 
case of a popular overthrow of their ascenden- 
cy, as denyitii^ the vital principles of a free Gov- 
ernment, and as an avowal of contemplated trea- 
son, which it is the iniperaiive duty of an in- 
dignant people strongly to rebuke and forever 
silence. » 

Fourth. That (he niainlenance inviolate of 
the rights of the Slates, and especially ihe right 
of each State to order and control its own do- 
mestic institutions, according to its own jadg- 
laeni exclusively, is essendul to that balance of 
power on which the perfection and endurance of 
our political faith depends; and we denounce the 
lawless invasion by armed force of any State or 
Territory, no matter under what pretext, as 
among the gravest of crimes. 

F/ik. That the present Democratic Adrainis- 
traiiuu has far exceeded our worst apprehensions 
ill its measureless subserviency to the exactions 
of a sectional interest, as is especially evident 
in its desperate exertions to force the mfamous 
Lecoraptoa Constitution upon the protesting peo- 
ple of Kansas — in construing the personal rela- 
tion between master and servant to involve an 
unqaalilied property in persons — in its ;itlempted 
enturcement everywhere, on land and sea, through 
the intervention of Congress and the Federal 
courts, of the extreme pretensions of a purely lo- 
cal interest, and in its general and unvarying abuse 
of tbe power intrusted to it by a confiding people. 

SixUi. That the people justly view with alarm 
the reckless extravagance which pervades every 
department of the Federal G-overnment; that a 
return to rigid economy and accountability is in- 
dispensable to arrest the system of plunder of the 
public Treasury by favored partisans ; while the 
recent startling developments of fraud and cor- 
ru[Uion at the Federal metropolis show that an 
entire change of Administration is imperatively 
demanded. 

Seventh. That the new dogma that the Consti- 
tution of its own force carries slavery into any 
or all of the Territories of the United States, is a 
dangerous political heresy, at variance with the 
ex[)licit provisions of that instrument itself, with 
cotemporaneous exposition, and with legislative 
and judicial precedent; is revolutionary in its 
tendency, and subv-ersive of the peace and har- 
mony of the country. 

Eighth. That the normal condition of all the 
territory of the United States is that of Freedom ; 
that as our republican fathers, when they had 
abolished slavery in all our national territory, 
ordained that no person should be deprived of 
life, liberty, or property, without due process of 
law, it becomes our duty, by legislation, when- 
erer such legislation is necessary, to maintain 
this provision of the Constitution against all at- 
tempts to violate it; and we deny tne authority 
of Congress, of a Territorial Legislature, or of 



I any individuals, to give legal existence to sla- 
very in any Territory of the United States. 

NiiUh. That we brand the recent reopening of 
the African slave trade, under the cover of our 
national flag, aided by perversions of judicir.l 
power, as a crime against humanity, a burning 
shame to our country and age ; and we call upon 
Congress to take prompt and efficient measures 
for the total and final suppression of that exe- 
crable traffic. i 

Tenth. That in the recent vetoes by their Fed- 
eral Governors of the acts of the Legislatures 
of Kansas and Nebraska, prohibiting slavery in 
those Territories, we find a practical illustratioQ 
of the boasted Democratic principles of non-in- 
tervention and [lopul.ir sovereignly, embodied in 
the Kansas and Nebraska bill, and a denuncia- 
tion of the deception and fraud involved therein. 

EleoeiUh. That Kansas should of right be im- 
mediately admitted as a State under the Consti- 
tution recently formed and adopted by her people, 
and accepted by the House of Representatives. 

Twelfth. That while providing revenue for the 
support of the General Government by duties 
upon inrports, sound policy requires such an ad- 
jiisctneut of these duties as to encourage the de- 
velopment of the industrial interests of the whole 
country ; and we commend that policy Cif nation- 
al exclianges, which secures to the woi'king men 
liberal wages, to agriculture remunerating prices, 
to mechaiiics and manufacturers an adt^qijiat« 
reward for their slcill, labor, and enterpris«7-^;.nd 
to the nation commercial prosperity and ini'fi- 
pendence. 

'Thirteenth. That we protest against any sale 
or alienation to others of the public lands held 
by actual settlers, and against any view of the 
free homestead policy which regards the settlers 
as paupers orsu[iplic:ints lor public bounty; and 
we demand the passage by Congress of the com- 
plete and satisfactory homestead measure which 
has already passed the House. 

Fourteenth. That the Republican party is op- 
posed to any change in our naturalization laws, 
or any State legislation by which the rights of 
citizenship hitherto accorded to immigrants from 
foreign lands shall be abridged or impaired ; and 
in favor of giving a full and efficient protection 
to the rights of all classes of citizens, whether 
native or naturalized, both at home and abroad. 

Fifteenth. That the appropriations by Congress 
for river and harbor improvements of a nation- 
al character, required for the accommodation 
and security of an existing commerce, are author- 
ized by the Constitution and justihed by an ob- 
ligation of the Government to protect the lives 
and property of its citizens. 

Sixteenth. That a railroad to the Pacific Ocean 
is imperatively demanded by the interests of the 
whole country ; that the Federal Government 
ought to render immediate and efficient aid in 
its construction ; and that, as preliminary thereto, 
a daily overland mail should be promptly es- 
tablished. 

Seventeenth. Finally, having thus set forth our 
distinctive principles and views, we invite the 
co-operatiou of all citizens, however differing on 
other questions, who substantially agree with us 
in their affirmance and support. 



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BINDERY INC. |§| 

#APR 89 
N. MANCHESTER, 
INDIANA 46962 






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